The use of guy lines as support elements for masts, poles, beams, towers and like vertical members is well known. Typically, a tall, vertically oriented structure, such as an antenna mast, requires a plurality of support elements to prevent the mast from bending, swaying or collapsing under stress forces resulting from environmental influences, particularly wind, coupled with the inherent high center of gravity of the mast or mast and antenna combination. The mast or pole may be braced with a set of lines having one end affixed to the mast and made fast at the opposite end to a suitably rigid structure such as a pin anchored in the ground. Such a set usually consists of three guy lines, each with one end affixed to the mast at the same vertical position along the mast, and the other end anchored to the ground at a point horizontally displaced from the base of the mast such that the ends of the guy lines are corners or points of a right triangle with the base of the mast forming the right angle corner or point thereof. More lines, of course, per set, may be used for added stability and a plurality of sets are commonly employed on taller masts, with each set being disposed at different vertical positions along the mast, usually with one set affixed near the top of the mast. Guy lines may be made from a wide variety of materials such as rope, wire or steel cord, all of single or multiple strands depending on the particular application.
A typical antenna assembly may include a mast, braced by guy lines, which carries an antenna array affixed at the top thereof. A great number of such antenna arrays are a generally planar configuration having a central boom mounting the elements at their approximate middle and perpendicular to the boom. Typically the arrays require frequent service, repair or replacement, necessitating raising and lowering of the array as by hoisting it with a block and tackle arrangement located at the top of the mast. The arrays are normally quite large and bulky, with booms ranging in length from 12 to 60 feet or more of 2 to 3 1/2 inch diameters and having thirty to sixty foot element lengths not being uncommon. Due to dimensions of this order, when the array is raised or lowered adjacent or near to the mast, the guy lines may obstruct its path, particularly along those points near where the guy lines converge and are affixed to the mast. Consequently, either the array must be worked around and between the guy lines, often a cumbersome and dangerous operation for a person on the mast or a ladder supported thereby; or the array must be moved outside of a perimeter defined by the radially distal extent of the guy lines, as with a cherry picker or other hoisting apparatus, thereby creating a less dangerous but highly expensive operation due to the cost for use of such apparatus.
It is, therefore, apparent that the state of the art is such that a need exists for apparatus by which an object can be moved along a directional axis intersected by a support element and be manipulated to pass through the support element without requiring removal of the interfering element or having to circumvent it.